How to Find a 1913 Liberty Head Nickel

The 1913 Liberty Head nickel is one of the most famous rarities in American coin collecting. Only five examples are known to exist, and none were ever officially authorized by the U.S. Mint—the Liberty Head design had already been replaced by the Buffalo nickel for that year’s regular production.

GetCoinHunt helps you search inventory from multiple coin dealers in one place and create a wishlist alert. With only five examples known and each one individually documented, that alert exists mainly to flag any claimed listing for serious scrutiny rather than to expect ordinary availability.

What makes the 1913 Liberty Head nickel important to collectors?

The Mint officially switched the nickel’s design from the Liberty Head to the Buffalo (Indian Head) design for 1913. No Liberty Head nickels were supposed to have been struck that year at all. Nonetheless, five examples dated 1913 surfaced years later, first publicly revealed by Samuel W. Brown, a former Philadelphia Mint employee, who placed an advertisement offering to buy examples of the coin before later disclosing that he already possessed all five—an origin story documented by PCGS CoinFacts and the numismatic trade press’s histories of the issue. How the coins were actually produced and left the Mint has never been definitively documented, though Brown’s Mint employment at the time is central to most explanations offered by historians.

Each of the five known specimens has its own well-documented pedigree, and several have individually famous stories. The finest known, the Eliasberg/Lee specimen (graded PCGS PR66), has sold at auction for $4.56 million through Stack’s Bowers. Another, the Walton specimen, was believed by its owning family to be a fake for decades after a 1962 car accident, until a team of numismatic experts authenticated it in 2003—an episode covered extensively in the numismatic trade press, including the eventual payment of a long-standing reward that had been offered for the coin’s recovery; it was later loaned to the American Numismatic Association for public display.

How to evaluate a claimed 1913 Liberty Head nickel

Because only five genuine examples exist, and each has a documented, traceable ownership history, evaluating a claimed example is fundamentally a question of pedigree and authentication, not simple date-and-mint-mark identification.

Confirm which of the five specimens is being offered

A legitimate offering should be identifiable as one of the five known, individually documented coins, with an ownership history that can be traced and verified—not an anonymous “newly discovered” example.

Insist on current third-party certification

Given the coin’s value and fame, only a certified example from a major grading service (PCGS or NGC), with the certification number verified directly on the service’s own website, should be considered credible.

Be skeptical of “discovery” claims

The coin’s fame has made it a frequent target for replicas and altered date-and-mint-mark nickels (typically starting from a common Buffalo nickel or an ordinary 1913 Liberty Head strike from a different denomination or country) presented as a sixth example. Any claim of a previously unknown genuine specimen warrants extraordinary scrutiny from recognized numismatic experts before being taken seriously.

Know the physical specifications

Per U.S. Mint records and PCGS CoinFacts, the Liberty Head nickel weighs 5 grams, measures 21.2mm in diameter, is struck in 75% copper and 25% nickel, and has a plain edge. These specifications describe the type generally; they are not, on their own, sufficient to authenticate a coin claimed to be one of the five known 1913 specimens.

Suggested search terms and filters

A search for “1913 Liberty Head nickel” in ordinary dealer inventory should be expected to return no genuine results. With only five documented examples in existence, that’s the correct outcome, not a sign the search tool is failing.

Availability and pricing notes

The five known specimens change hands infrequently and almost always through major auction houses, with prices in the millions of dollars for top examples. This is not a coin found through routine dealer browsing.

How the GetCoinHunt wishlist alert works

1. Search for the coin to confirm nothing questionable is currently listed.
2. Add it to your wishlist so you’re notified if a legitimate auction offering is ever detected.
3. Treat any match with serious scrutiny. Confirm which of the five known specimens is being referenced, verify current certification, and consult a recognized numismatic expert before considering any transaction.

Frequently asked questions

How many 1913 Liberty Head nickels exist?

Five, and each has a documented, individually traceable ownership history.

Were any 1913 Liberty Head nickels officially authorized by the Mint?

No. The Liberty Head design had already been replaced by the Buffalo nickel for 1913’s regular production. How and why the five examples were struck has never been definitively documented.

What’s the most valuable 1913 Liberty Head nickel sale on record?

The Eliasberg/Lee specimen, graded PCGS PR66, sold for $4.56 million through Stack’s Bowers—the finest known of the five.

What is the Walton specimen’s story?

The Walton family believed their example was counterfeit for decades after a 1962 car accident, until a team of numismatic experts authenticated it in 2003, more than 40 years later.

If someone offers to sell me a 1913 Liberty Head nickel, what should I do?

Be highly skeptical unless it is clearly identifiable as one of the five documented specimens with verifiable provenance and current third-party certification. Consult a recognized numismatic expert before proceeding.

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